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Friday, March 13, 2009

Week 18 tummy

This one is a complete and utter ramble. I don't know how to corral it into cohesiveness.

But I have pictures!

Week 18, according to one website, the little dude is the size of a boneless chicken breast. According to another, he's a bell pepper.

The boneless chicken breast both amuses and grosses me out more.

This was the week that colleagues I am not super close to started saying, "Hey! You look pregnant!"

And I would think, "Yes, and I'm nurturing a boneless chicken breast!"

I kind of love that my belly is all obviously sticking out now. And as soon as I eat or drink anything, it sticks out more. Some moments, I look veryvery preg.

Betty has been out of town since mid-February, and when I see her this weekend, she will be shocked. I reported that my boobs had hit a C. She was astounded.

In my family, we have the big strong thighs with which our Viking ancestors marauded and conquered - and then in later years traversed the North Dakota prairie. The boobs, we have not so much of.

She called the other day from the dressing room of a consignment shop. She was trying on maternity clothes for me, but she had no idea what size. Her friend, in the background, suggested I measure my thighs.

"Sweetie, you want to measure your thighs?"

Um, no. No fucking way. No.

What kind of question is that?

I was at the OB on Tuesday, and I asked the nurse to just not tell me what my weight was. She wasn't at all surprised. I bet a lot of people do this.

It's not that I'm fighting it - by no stretch of the imagination; I just don't want to know.

In that same visit, the doctor said I can keep up with the running until I simply can't. I am wondering when the "simply can't" moment will hit.

And here's a tarted up picture. It's far from my favorite picture of myself, but I feel like it shows the preg pretty well.

I had to choose between a picture with a better face that also featured the hottie hot boots, and this one, which shows the pregnanty bits more.

This seemed more useful.

And the boots! I must note, I had to lean waaaaaay back in a chair and put my legs up on the desk for five or so minutes so that I could zip them over my calves at the end of the day.

This is another thing about pregnancy that's kind of weird. My size from tummy down changes dramatically from the time I get up in the morning to the time I nearly plod into bed at night.

My friend Wendy likened pregnancy to a science experiment, and I have to absolutely agree.

You look absolutely amazing! And don't worry, lots of people tell the nurses not to tell them their weight. I had lots of friends that had no clue what they weighed through the whole thing.

It's so much nicer when you are obviously pregnant. People are very nice to you, you get lots of smiles. Sure beats the first few months where everyone just thinks you are hitting the cheesecake a bit too hard!

Hillary - Thank you so much! I think because chicken has been grossing me out in general, and then to add "boneless" - it just made me all icky. But you are right - rump roast is kind of ideal as a description.

Cheryl - Thank you! I had no idea this post would be such a nice boost!

And yes, so much better. (Also, complete truth is, I was feeling sorry for myself with no drinking and hitting the cheesecake - literally, cheesecake - very hard in the beginning...And that showed, fast.)

Oh Lisa, you look beautiful! And rackalicious! (Can I say that?) Well, quelle rack, anyway. And I love the dress, and I remember very well how much fun it was to show the belly. Yay belly! That part just gets more and more fun. But then I lucked out somehow and never experienced the shock of a stranger touching my belly. Fingers crossed that the random people you meet behave themselves!

The "simply can't" moment will be obvious to you, don't worry. When I was about 5 months pregnant with Zeke, Jason and I went out to play some tennis. As I lunged for a ball, I felt something pull at the bottom of my belly, not quite a muscle tear, but close. And that's when I knew, "yeah, this is a bad idea." I was able to jog comfortably until around 7 months or so -- after that, it would result in Braxton-Hicks contractions that would leave me flattened for at least two days.

On that note, I'm going skiing, because my OB said I could until 18 weeks.

You look fantastic! Your bump is coming along quite nicely. Don't stress the weight stuff. You look wonderful, and are far from fat. And just think, the more the belly grows, the more the rest will all seem small by comparison.

A.S. - Awesome! Thank you! Nobody has ever said I look rackalicious before! I haven't yet had any random strangers notice - I think because I'm bundled in coats when out and about. It will be a big turning point when that happens!

Dagny - While I LOVE your glam multiple outfit image, the reality is far more prosaic. More like scooting waists of pants down or putting feet up to depuff legs.

And the clothes I am not so excited about, but ooh, I have been making up for it in shoes! (Your land of milk-n-honey tax free shoes!)

Wendy - Yah, I believe that. I run and lift weights - so nothing like tennis that requires quick movement or turns, but I can totally see there just being a point where it feels like too much.

You look great! Just completely adorable. I hope you and Nick had a fantabulous time. And I think you will know when you can't run any more, like maybe when you can't be more than a minute away from the closest bathroom.

Yep, you'll know when to stop jogging. I used to walk with my neighbor. At first I got to the point where she needed to tie my shoe if it came undone. And then I got to the point where it just took too damn long for me to get around our loop and I was on the verge of making us miss work entirely.